Michael Higgins, the chef as politician

REALCUISINE | Julianne Glatz

“Of all the professions…few people are less suited to be suddenly thrown into the public eye than chefs.” —Anthony Bourdain in his bestselling book, Kitchen Confidential.

Bourdain wrote those words in 2000. His point was that the denizens of restaurant kitchens’ controlled chaos and crazy hours were unlikely candidates for celebrity. But the intervening years have shown that some chefs make great celebrities – and I’m talking about actual chefs, not faux-chef personalities, such as Rachael Ray and Sandra Lee. Not least among those real chefs is Bourdain himself, a self-described journeyman chef. His sardonic wit combined with genuine enthusiasm for real food and off-the-tourista-trail travel have reputedly made him the highest-paid “celebrity chef” in America through his best-selling books, and television food/travel shows (currently on Travel Channel).

Politicians are necessarily celebrities, too: people well-known in their constituencies, whether those constituencies encompass a district, city, county, state or an entire country.

But few, if any, chefs have leapt into the political fray as candidates, though noteworthy chefs have gotten involved in politics, especially relating to food issues. A cursory look through the Internet found none that had entered the political fray as actual candidates.

Except here in Springfield, that is. “What do you think about our buddy running for alderman?” asked Michael Ayers last December when I ran into him in Schnuck’s parking lot. “Who?” I asked. “Mike,” he replied. “Mike,” he repeated when I still looked blank. “Mike Higgins.”

I hadn’t seen that one coming. When anyone asks where I live, my answer is “Springfield,” but I’ve never actually lived inside the city limits. So while I’ve always been aware of Springfield politics and politicians, I haven’t paid as close attention as I would have otherwise. Undoubtedly, though, I’d have known about Higgins, a longtime friend, if I hadn’t been in NYC for several weeks prior. While it initially surprised me, I immediately realized Higgins’ candidacy made sense.

“All politics is local,” said former Speaker of the House Tip O’Neill. Higgins has been advocating local food for a very long time. He’s deeply involved in the Buy Fresh, Buy Local movement. He’s a big supporter of Springfield’s farmers markets, and regularly gives cooking demonstrations there. But even before BFBL and the current farmers markets existed, Higgins was supporting local farmers, and suppliers. I know that personally, because he was a regular customer – the only chef customer – at my grandparents’ organic produce farm in the ’80s and ’90s. Over the years I’ve also had several of those farmers and suppliers tell me – without me asking – how much Higgins’ support has meant to them. It’s fashionable now for restaurants to denote provenance (where the ingredients come from), especially locally sourced items, on their menus. But Higgins was doing so years ahead of anyone else here, and long before most people even cared.

His commitment to local goes far beyond food issues, however, as I found when I asked him about his candidacy.

Why did he decide to run for alderman?

“I’ve been involved in this community for a long time,” he says. “And I was looking for someone to bring a little heart and soul to the city council.” Higgins wants to do more for Springfield citizens than just feed them.

“Ward 7 has a wide range of income levels,” he told me. “In my ward, people need their sidewalks, potholes and sewers fixed like they do in other areas.

“I’m tired of seeing the hotel/motel tax applied to other things besides infrastructure, which is what it was put into place to take care of.”